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A SI', KM ON 



ON T II t 



DEATH OF HENRY (LAV: 



PRE AC II K.I > 1 \ 



TRINITY CHURCH, BALTIMORE. 



(Dn 7tl) Suntouj after {trinity, 1852, 

BY REV. GEO. A. LEAKIN, A.M. 



PUBLISH ED i: V A. P. BU RT 
B. B. RUBER, PRINTER. 

1 86 1 



A SERMON 



() N I II I 



DEATH OF HENRY CLAY; 



l'l{ I '.AC II K I) i \ 



TRINITY CHURCH, BALTIMORE, 



On 7tl) Sunlunj ut'ta fcritlitg, 1852, 

BY REV. GEO. A. I.EAKIN, A.M. 



■»■>..- 



PUBLISHED IV A. P. BURT 

H. E. HUBER, PRINTER. 

1852 






At a meeting of the Vestry of Trinity Church, the following resolution 
was adopted : 

Resolved, That our Rector be respectfully requested to submit for publi- 
cation, a copy of the Sermon on the death of Henry Clay, preached in this 
Church on the 25th July, 1852. 



N. CHRISTOPHER, 
JONATHAN CHAPMAN, 
BENJAMIN CHARLES, 
JAMES HOPKINS, 



GUSTAVUS PHELTZ, 
ROBERT WISE, 
ROBERT INGLESON, 
THOMAS MAGEE. 






S E 1! MO \ T 

ON THE DEATH OF BENE? CLAY. 



i leach us to Dumber our days, thai pply out hearts unto 

wisdom."— Psalm 90th : vet I 

The 90th Psalm is Bupposed to have been written bj M< 
when God shortened the days of the murmuring Israelites; il 
however a Psalm of general use, and is by the Church a 

pari of thai burial Ben ice which is read over the remains of her 
members: and as this day tv I iployed it in 

speaking of the death of President Tayl il may with 

equal propriety, be devoted to considering the death of Henrj 
( lay. 

Death, under any circumstanci 3, is calculated to remind us of 
our own mortality and the emptiness of earth; but where such 
death is connected with greatness and worth, there is not onlv 
demanded by cur feelings some marl d, but the exam- 

ple left us tends to direct our conduct aright, and to cheer 
who survive with the hopes of hem. nbered when ice arc 

gone. 

\ celebrated sculptor, on beinj 1 why be took Buch pains 

with a statue, said he was working for eternal fame; he looked 
for his reward in that posterity which would do justice to his 
exertions. And bo in remembering greatness of < iter, we 

arc not only paying it a due tribute, hut amidst the cares of 
daily duties, we are encouraging ourselves and others with the 
hopes of future recompense. These remarks, applicable to any 
departed greal man, are particularly so in the case of him wl. 
mortal remains having passed through our city, now repose in 
his own loved Ashland. It would obvious!) he improper on this 
occasion to enter upon the political field, and praise M Clay 
as the member of a party. No: it- is as a jjreat \ nerican 



Statesman that he should be remembered ; for whatever differ- 
ences of opinion may have existed among his countrymen, they 
all now unite in a tribute to his ability and honesty. Says Mr. 
Breckenridge, of Kentucky, (a political opponent,) " If I were 
to write his epitaph, I would inscribe as his highest eulogy, Here 
lies a man who Avas in public service fifty years, and who never 
deceived his countrymen." It was this conviction that has 
caused such deep sorrow. The signs of wo were not assumed 
as a mere matter of form, but they were the genuine expression 
of the heart; for nothing less than this conviction could have 
produced on last Tuesday, a procession seven miles in length — 
the longest ever seen in New York. Mr. Clay was a good 
representative of the American character: and at the mention 
of his name, we picture his tall form standing by the flag of his 
country and advocating its principles; while, in the distance, 
appear the fruits of American industry. And indeed, though 
his main efforts were for his own country, yet wherever man 
suffered, there did his exertions and sympathies extend. His 
foundation was indeed in his own land ; but he rose so high as 
to see and be seen by the oppressed of other shores ; — and ac- 
cordingly, his fame, instead of being exclusively ours, is suffi- 
ciently expanded to be shared by the world at large. And the 
foreigner shall visit his grave as that of one he knows. 

" Such graves as his are pilgrims' shrines — 

Shrines to no creed or code confined ; 
The Delphian vales, the Palestines — 

The Mecca's of the mind."* 



* Mr. Clay was almost a solilary example of a person ranking high as an 
advocate, a parliamentary orator, and as a minister of State; for he shone 
equally at the bar, in the Senate, or in the Cabinet. 

Mr. Clay was of the second generation of American Statesmen; but he 
ranked among the highest of American worthies, — and though his country 
will pay to his memory the respects which are due, yet his virtues and 
talents entitle him to the veneration of the world. 

Though in public life so many years, nothing low or sordid crossed his 
career; he was an ardent, but judicious, lover of freedom, and was devoted 
to the general interests of his country. — From the London Times, My 12. 



Were I to enter particularly upon the eminent Bervicei of \i 
Claj instead of a Sermon, you would have a biatorj oi our 

couutr\ for tlir la>t tii'u years; for there haa been no measure 
of importance with which he baa no) been connected. 1 shall 
therefore briefly say, that born in Hanover County, Va. be bad 
none of those advantages of influence or education which belt 
to the favored young of the present day. At the age oi twenty, 
he uciii to Kentucky extremelj poor, and commencing the pra - 
tice of law, was through industrj combined with bigh talents. 
eminently successful. 

In 1803 he was elected to the legislature, and from that tun- 
to the present a period of nearly filly years -he has been in 
the service of bis country, either at home or abroad. At three 
different times has our Union been endangered, and three times 
lias he been prominent in il ue; the first was the admission 

of Missouri into the I nion; the second was the attitude assumed 
by South Carolina, ami the last is that crisis through which we 
have just passed— -a storm which still Bhows the lightning in 
the distance, and whose angry wave- have hardly yet been 
calmed. Some few \< ars a <> Mr. t lay bade farewell to politi- 
cal life, thinking to spend the remainder of his days in the 
retirement of his home; b I was the threatening aspect of 

affairs, that he was induced to forward and unite with dis- 

tinguished men oi differing views, in maturing and adopting that 
adjustment of the difficulty known as the Compromise Measures. 
To the accomplishment of this, he bent every exertion; he 
retired from Washington to tl a of Mr. Calvert in Prince 

George's Co. and there through incessant Btudy, he perfected the 
plan which, in all probability, saved the Union. Indeed, it is 
generally supposed that the anxiety and effort necessary to meet 
crisis was Mich, that his health received a Bhock from which 
it did not recover. He lived, however, long enough to Bee tin- 
chasm between the North and South spanned bj a bridge, which 
will not easily be shaken, and which will c ind as a monu- 

ment to his memory. Henry I tl General, nor even Pn 

dent, but simply Henry! and at that name millions of hearts, 
touched by the sound, utter a deep response. The Presidency 



is an office calculated to elevate the humblest, and to throw lus- 
tre on the highest rank, and yet Mr. Clay never was President, 
being defeated for that office three times. Mr. Clay never was 
in war, and could not boast of those military achievements which 
have such influence on mankind. Mr. Clay had no wealth ; for 
he was always poor, and was indebted to friends for releasing 
him from a heavy obligation assumed for another. Mr. Clay was 
during his whole political course the actor in exciting events, 
which wrecked the political hopes of many around him ; and 
he was frequently assailed with all the fury that a political con- 
test engenders — his motives misrepresented, and his honesty ques- 
tioned ; — and yet having no influence from the Presidency, from 
wealth, from the renown of hard-won battles; though so assailed 
by partizan bitterness, his name wielded an influence that was 
contagious. And whence was that influence? Why it came 
from a conviction of his devotion to his country ; that his life 
was an inward struggle to advance its interests ; and that such 
a life, extorting the incessant labor of thought, was more illus- 
trious than achievements which come merely from external actions, 
or even from such actions united to the occasional perils of battle. 
His influence came from the general belief, that he " would rather 
be right than President." But, besides this enlarged patriotism 
which gave him such a hold upon the hearts of his countrymen, 
there was another cause which I have not seen mentioned, but 
which doubtless added greatly to his influence. It was his 
accessible manner, open to all ranks of his fellow citizens, which 
made him great on all occasions. In the cabin, as well as in the 
palace or the parlor, he was still the same. Some men are 
great on great occasions; but in the intercourse of life, they 
are distant, inaccessible, reserved ; and hence, though respected, 
they are not loved. But Mr. Clay was a rare instance of one 
who cradled in poverty, still remembered the poor, and who per- 
mitted no elevation of office to hide from his view the wants and 
feelings of others. As an illustration of this attention to little 
things, I remember some {ew years ago, Mr. Clay being in the 
cars coming from Washington, when a poor woman entered at 
one of the stopping places and looked around for a vacant seat: 



hut she looked in vain; for no one seemed disposed to none. 
her, until she caughl the eye of Mr. Clay, who immediate! j ai 
and offered his scat. Such acts of kindness, proceeding from no 
expectation of any return, Bhow a disposition of disinterested be- 
nevolence, which makes the deepest impression. 

It is the province of a truly great mind neither to neglect little 
things for the Bake of those thai are greater, nor yet to confine 
its attention to the small field of human wants immediately around 
it. And so it was with Mr. Clay; for that same spirit which 
prompted him to rise in behalf of this i ted woman, arc 

him to rise in the Senate, and raise his clarion voice for the op- 
pressed of* distant climes. He interceded for the Greek strug- 
gling to shake off tin- Turkish yoke, — and he interposed to 
break the chains which hound th ith American Republics 

to Spanish despotism. And now, when th a of his death 

shall reach distant shores, the hell shall toll, the shall droop 

at half-mast, and sorrow shall mark many faces, as in a foreign 
tongue they say, "He is dead— our friend is dead!" 

•• W] Q\ r olden blade, 

For iry in the hau !■• : 

Wh< re < Ihii ublime, 

L landmark b] >f time 

1 [is name shall, aa o • d 

Pn - — 

!' >1 from tl to Hi ivcn, 

The warm wild music of the heart." 

Having sufficiently for our present purpose considered Mr. 
Clay's political career, it will be interesting to know the nature 
of those domestic tics which constitute; home, and which ezerc 
so great an influence in moulding every one's character. In re- 
ference to his early life, we know very little — it not being sup- 
posed that the obscure •• mill boj "" \\ ould ei er become our gn 
Statesman. But there is reason to helieve that he was bless 
with a pious mother, and he was known as "being good and 
kind to her." She died when he was yet young, but so carefully 
had she instilled religious truth, that though amidst the Btorms 
of politics, the good seed was dormant, it yet sprung np and 



8 

bore fruit in later years. We infer this influence on his early- 
days from the fact, that just before he died, he was heard to 
mutter, " my mother ! my mother ! my dear wife !" That wife 
still survives him, but perhaps it will not be long ; for though 
she stood by his coffin, and took a last long look, she was too 
feeble to accompany the body to the tomb. 

On one occasion, Mr. Clay spoke of " the pious example of 
one very near and dear to him, as that which led him deeply to 
feel and earnestly to seek for himself, the reality and blessed- 
ness of religion." And that one was most probably his dear 
wife. Of his children four died in childhood. Eliza, a young 
lady of unusual promise, died while on her way with him to 
Washington, — and almost at the same moment, he heard of the 
death of another and most accomplished daughter in New Or- 
leans. A third daughter, upon whom his affections centered 
after the death of the other two, died in 1835. On hearing of 
this bereavement Mr. Clay fainted, and did not leave his room 
for many days. Upon his first subsequent appearance in the 
Senate, he alluded touchingly to his afflictions: and some time 
afterwards, having occasion to speak " of the vicissitudes of 
human life," in allusion to domestic afflictions, he was so over- 
powered with emotion that he sat down in a flood of tears. His 
apology for this unexpected emotion drew with it the sympathy 
of all present. 

In a letter to Mr. Frelinghuysen on this occasion, he remarked, 
" I thank you for the deep interest which you so kindly take in 
my spiritual welfare. I should be most happy to have full con- 
fidence and assurance on that serious subject. It is one on 
which — if I have given no evidence to the world of its having 
engaged my thoughts — I have long and constantly reflected with 
the greatest solicitude ; and I indulge the hope, that I shall ulti- 
mately find peace. My late sad affliction has taught me an awful 
lesson, and impressed me with a solemn conviction of the utter 
vanity of all earthly things." Of his five sons, one died in the 
battle of Buena Vista, one is deranged and three survive, one of 
whom lives with his mother in Ashland. 

The exact state of a person's domestic concerns, would give 



a verj fair view of his real character; but this exact view can- 
not well be known without exercising a curiosit) dangerous and 
reprehensible, but still our can rorm a tolerably correct opinion 
of what goes on within l>\ wliat appears without. And hence, 
we may infer from two circumstances, that Mr. Clay's home 
was home indeed. The first is, be told Senator I aderwo 
"that as death approached, be found his afiectioi a en- 

trating more and more upon his domestic circle, his wife and 
children." And the second i-, that Buch was the opposition In- 
met with in political life, and so many were the bereavements in 
his family, thai if be had not 1" en sustained by the warm affi 
tion of his wife and surviving children, he musl have been 
crushed under trouble, or rushed for relief to intemperance or 
gaming. Htence, we infer that as his family cherished him 
while Living, they will deeply feel his loss now that he is dead. 
And sympathising with them, we have this morning prayed that 
they might be comforted in their distress by Him, who in answer 
to prayer, becomes the Father, of the fatherless, and the 11ns- 
band of the widow. 

Having considered the character of Mr. Clay, politically and 
socially, we shall lastly inquire how jd towards his Ma- 

ker; or, in other words, what ir«s his religious characl 
And here, while we deplore that though all we know of the 
religion <>f many great men, is from the delusive confessions of 
a death-bed, such we rejoice was nol the case with our departed 
fellow-communicant He undoubtedly had neglected religion for 
many years, and had done man] things incompatible with love 
to the Saviour; but some years before his death, the man) 
afflictions he experienced, seem to have led him to seek that 
peace which the world cannot give, nor take away. Twentj 
years ago he wrote, "lam a member of n<> religious Beet, and 1 
am not a professor of religion. I regret that [am n«>t ; I wish I 
was, and trusl 1 shall be. I have, and 1 always have had, a pro- 
found regard for Christianity ion of m\ fathers, and 
for its rites, its usages and observances.' 1 Still later, while on 
a visit to New Orleans, he said to a friend, " I believe in the 
truth of Christianity, though I am not certain of having •■ 



10 

rienced that change of heart which the Divines call a new birth, 
But I trust in God and Jesus, and hope for immortality. I have 
not for years retired at night without prayer for the blessing of 
heaven, and that in infinite mercy he would prepare me for the 
joys of a better world. I have tried the world and found its 
emptiness; it cannot fill and satisfy the human mind ; my dear 
sir, how utterly disconsolate, should we be without something 
better beyond the grave !" Mr. Clay's baptism having been 
neglected in early life, he was some few years ago, at the age 
of seventy, publicly baptized by Rev. Mr. Berkley of Christ 
Church, Lexington, Ky. Thus he was not ashamed to confess 
the faith of Christ crucified, but resolved to fight manfully un- 
der Christ's banner, and be a faithful soldier unto his life's end. 

Says Rev. Mr. B. " although the suns of seventy summers 
had shone upon him before he made a public profession of Christ, 
yet when he did make it, he did it not mechanically, — and as a 
matter of course, because he was an old man, — but he did it 
heartily and on conviction, because he felt himself to be a sinner, 
and because he felt the need of a Saviour." 

The immediate cause of Mr. Clay's baptism was the death of 
his son, Col. Clay, in the Mexican war. God seems to have 
blessed this most afflictive bereavement^ in clearing his way to 
the truth as it is in Jesus ; for together with the little orphan 
children of his beloved son, he was baptized, and himself re- 
ceived into the communion of the Church. When, after these 
events, as a friend referred to his having come out on the side 
of the Saviour and confessed him before men, — he fervently 
replied, "yes sir, and it has been to me a source of inexpressi- 
ble satisfaction. 1 ' 

Mr. Clay was a member of the Protestant Episcopal Church, 
and during his sojourn in Washington City, was in its full com- 
munion in Trinity Parish, under the charge of Rev. Dr. Butler. 
Though burdened with the infirmity of age and the cares of State, 
he Sunday after Sunday, united in those same prayers which we 
use ; and so far from becoming tired of their repetition, or wearied 
with their length, that when on one occasion, the question of using 
the Prayer book in public worship was discussed, his simple and 



11 

racious remark was, I have always considered formi ol 
prayer necessary to prevent formality 

In 1 1 is last illness, he observed to Mr. Breckenridge, " 1 am not 
afraid to die, sir-. I have hope, faith, and some confidence. I do 
nut think any man ran be entirely certain in re ird to his future 
state; but I have an abiding trust in the merits and mediation <>i 
our Saviour." erved to a friend, thai " he was not only 

ready to go, but nillin knd thai friend writes, "he is the 

most gentle, patient and affectionate Bicb person [almost ever 
saw: he thanks you for everj thing, and is as little trouble as he 
possibly can be." 

The closing scenes of his life are thus described by Dr. But- 
ler who was hi- pastor, and whose kindness Mr. Claj deeply 
felt Says \h-. 1!., "on oi ision, he told me that he had 

been striving to form a conception of heaven, and he enlarged 
on the mc ri \ of that provision, b) which our Saviour became 
partaker of our humanity, that our hearts and hopes might cen- 
tre upon him." On another occasion whin supposed to be dj 
1 expressed the hope that his mind was at peace, and that he 
was enabled to confide in the promises of the Redeemer. Il< 
replied that "he trusted that he did rest on the merits of Christ; 
tha£ ^ Wa> ,,J0 late to look upon Christianity as a speculation; 
that he never doubted of its truth, and now wished to throv* 
himself upon it as a practical and blessed remedy."' Very soon 
after this, I administered the Lord's Supper. Being extremely 
feeble and desirous of having his mind undisturbed, no persons 
were present but his son and servant. It was a scene long to 
be remembered. There, in that still chamber, at a week-day 
noon, the tides of life all flowing strong around us, the minis! 
of God, the dying Statesman and his servant — a partaker of 
the like precious faith — commemorated their Saviour's dying 
love. He joined in the blessed sacramenl with great feeling 
and solemnity, now pressing his hands together, and now spread- 

•The sanv sentiment will tx found ably maintained in a chaij 
clergy of Pennsylvania by the B f tho i> 

"worship — the ise of a lit >ml will repay an attentive perusal 



12 

ing them forth as the words of the service expressed the 
desires, supplications and thanksgivings of his heart. During 
suffering, it was sufficient to suggest that such pain from his 
Heavenly Father's hand, was necessary to fit him for Heaven ; 
and at once he submitted with resignation. The night before 
death, he was heard to mutter, " my mother ! mother ! mother ! 
my dear wife !" as though she were present. About twenty 
minutes before dying he said to his son, " my son, I am going •, 
you had better sit beside me." And so quietly did he sleep in 
death, that it was some minutes before we knew he was dead. 

How blest the righteous when they die — 

When holy souls retire to rest; 
How mildly beams the closing eye; 

How gently heaves the expiring breast. 
So fades a summer cloud away ; 

So sinks the gale when storms are o'er; 
So gently shuts the eye of day ; 

So dies the wave upon the shore. 



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